Display tray assembly



Oct. 10, 1961 BLOOM ETAL DISPLAY TRAY ASSEMBLY 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Sept. 8, 1958 v u E n J u/ 1 w E m I u 7 n [Wu wi l 4 u w I 3 u 1W .wmfl. 1 J 5 a 9 3 INVENTORS BLOOM ELI BY ROBERT S. DORFMAN X MM FIG.3

ATTORNEY Oct. 10, 1961 E. BLOOM ETAL DISPLAY TRAY ASSEMBLY 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Sept. 8. 1958 FIG. 7

INVENTORS BLOOM ROBERT S. DORFMAN FIG.9

ELI

ATTORNEY Oct. 10, 1961 E, BLOOM Em 3,003,839

DISPLAY TRAY 'ASSEMBLY Filed Sept. 8, 1958 3 Sheets-Sheet 35 -19 FIG. l2 l6 I I [m I5" 41 l2! L 5| 43 L2 +4 I 46 4 b \w B INVENTORS ELI BLOOM ROBERT S. DORFMAN- ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,003,839 DISPLAY TRAY ASSEMBLY Eli Bloom, Philadelphia, Pa., and Robert S. Dorfman,

Lido Beach, N.Y., assignors to Universal Dental Company, Philadelphia, Pa., a corporation of Pennsylvania Filed Sept. 8, 1958, Ser. No. 759,503 20 Claims. (Cl. 312111) This invention relates to display trays, and more particularly to display trays of the type which may be mechanically interlocked to form a unitary structure whose storage capacity is expandable at will.

In the past, expandable capacity storage devices have been known, all of which sufifer from one or more different types of defects. For example, some of these known structures have been of extremely flimsy construction so that their effective service life has been comparatively short, and hence uneconomic. Others, although sutficiently ruggedly constructed, have been characterized by excessive weight and so present problems where portability is a factor to be considered. Moreover, some previous known structures require *an excessive amount of hardware for interconnecting the display units. In addition to the foregoing undesirable characteristics, many of the known display devices are relatively unattractive in appearance and hence detract from, rather than enhance, the presentation of the displayed articles. Accordingly, it is a primary object of our invention to provide a novel display assembly which is both physically rugged and at the same time relatively light in weight.

It is another object of our invention to provide a novel display assembly which requires no auxiliary hardware to increase the storage capacity of the display unit.

Still another object of our invention is to provide a novel display assembly which while being economical and capable of display space expansion is at the same time very pleasing in appearance so that the display tray tends to enhance the appearance of the displayed articles.

These and other objects will appear more clearly hereina-fter from a reading of the following specification when taken in conjunction with the several drawings, wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of a display assembly including a pair of interlocked display tray holders according to our invention, one of the interlocked tray holders being illustrated with its display drawer partially open.

FIGURE 2 is a fragmentary front view of the assembly of FIGURE 1 taken along the lines 22 of that figure, some parts being shown in section and other parts in elevation.

FIGURE 3 is a fragmentary sectional view taken along the lines 3-3 of FIGURE 1 and illustrating certain corner details.

FIGURE 4 is a side sectional view taken along the lines 4- 4 of FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 5 is an exploded view of the left-hand portion of FIGURE 2 with the display trays removed.

FIGURE 6 is a fragmented perspective view of the tray holding portion of the display assembly.

FIGURE 7 is a view of the left-hand portion of FIG- URE 2 and illustrates a display assembly which includes a top, a bottom, and two display tray sections.

FIGURE 8 is similar to FIGURE 7 but illustrates the display assembly in use with the bottom section removed.

FIGURE 9 is similar to FIGURE 8 but illustrates the display assembly in use with the bottom section and the bottom section connecting element removed, so thatthe display assembly rests directly on the lowest tray holder.

FIGURE 10 is a view similar to that of FIGURE 7 but illustrates an alternative embodiment of the novel "ice display assembly in which the several sections are secured together by the use of auxiliary fastener elements.

FIGURE 11 is a view of the alternative embodiment shown in FIGURE 10 in which the top, bottom, and tray holders have been separated from each other.

FIGURE 12 is an exploded view of the alternative embodiment shown in FIGURE 10 with the display trays removed.

In the several figures like elements are denoted by like reference numerals.

Referring now to FIGURE 1 there will be seen an illustrative display tray assembly which includes a top section 10, a bottom section 11, a pair of display trays 12, and a pair of tray holders '13. The top 10, bottom 11, and tray holders 13 are interlocked to form a composite rigid structure, in and out of which the drawers 12 may slide. Each of the foregoing mentioned individual parts is unitarily formed, as -for example from molded plastic. The particular plastics used may be transparent, translucent, or opaque, and may moreover be of colorless material or may have incorporated therein various colors to provide interesting and decorative effects.

Referring now to FIGURE 6 which illustrates certain of the constructional details of the tray holding section 13, there are seen a front apron 14 and a rear outside Wall 15 which merge at the left front and rear corners with the left outside sidewall 16. The front apron 14 is also integrally joined to the inside rear and left sidewalls 17 and 18 respectively by a floor 19. The inside walls 17 and 18 are joined to a top wall 20 through an outwardly offset shoulder 21, and the outside walls 15 and 16 are similarly joined to the top wall 20 by an in wardly offset shoulder 22. The inwardly offset outside shoulder 22 is located somewhat further below the top wall 20 than is the outwardly oifset inside shoulder 21. Located on the top wall 20 at each of the corners (on-1y two being visible in FIGURE 6) are vertically extending bosses 23.

Referring now to the exploded view of FIGURE 5, it will be observed that the floor 19 of the tray holder 13 is located in a vertical plane at a slightly higher elevation than the bottom edges of the outside rear and sidewalls 15 and 16. This difference in vertical elevation of the bottom of the floor '19 and the bottom of the outside walls 15 and 16 accommodates the differences in vertical elevation of the shoulders 21 and 22 relative to the top wall 20. It will be seen that when the upper tray holder 13 is seated downward on the top of the lower tray holder 13, the bottom of the floor 19 will seat upon the inside shoulder 21 and the bottom of the outside walls 15 and 16 will seat at the same time upon the outside shoulder 22. In order to insure a close fit of the tray holders 13 with one another, the outside walls 15 and 16 may be so molded that they are spread somewhat out. wardly at their lower periphery when forced into engagement with an underlying section, so that the outside walls when interlocked are biased to press inward. The tray holding sections 1 3 so fitted together are illustrated in FIGURES 2, 3, 4, and 7, 8, and 9.

When the tray holder sections 13- are so fitted together, the boss 23 on the lower tray holder 13 is forced upward into a complementally shaped aperture 27 formed in the corner structure of the tray holder 13 immediately above it. The boss 23 is seen to be formed with a conical top 24 underlaid by a conical frustum 25 which latter is joined to the top wal 20 by a cylindrical section 26. The aperture 27 in the corner structure of the upper tray holder 13 is provided near its bottom opening with shaped surfaces 24' and 25' within which the surfaces 24 and 25 of the boss 23 closely interfit. The boss 23 and the aperture 27 are deformable to a sufiicient degree to allow the force is exerted, but thereafter separation of the tray holders 13 is prevented unless a similar counter-directed force is applied. Hence, the tray holders 13 may be firmly interlocked through the mechanism of the bosses 23 and the apertures 27, and when so interlocked the fioor 19 of an upper holder 13 will seat firmly on the inside shoulder 21 of a lower tray holder 13 while the bottom of the outside walls 15 and 16 similarly seat on the outside shoulder 22. This interlocked arrangement is illustrated in FIGURES 2, 7, 8, and 9. FIG- URES 3 and 4 show a similar interfitting, but do not illustrate the interlocking arrangement of the bosses 23 because these sectional views are not taken through the corner structures.

Referring still to the exploded view of FIGURE 5, it will be observed that the top 10 and the bottom 11 are substantially identical in that they both have the same dimensional configuration, ditfering only in that the aperture 29 in the bottom 11 is open at both ends whereas the aperture 3% in the top It} is open only at the bottom, the top being closed in the region 31. The top 10 may be so molded that the region 31 may be readily broken away or otherwise removed and thereby convert a top section 1! into a bottom section 11. Thus, only a single mold is required to form either a top It or bottom 11. The aperture 39 in the top it) is adapte to interlock with the boss 23 on the upper tray holder 13 in a manner similar to that already described in connection with the interlocking arrangement of the tray holders 13 with each other. When so interlocked, the skirt 32 of top section 10 seats firmly on the outside shoulder 22 of the top tray holder 13 as illustrated in FIGURES 2, 3, 4, 7, 8, and 9.

When however, it is desired that the top 10 be used as a bottom section 11, it will be apparent that a supplementary coupling element is required to secure the bottom .11 to the underside of a lower tray holder 13, inasmuch as the bottom section 11 has no vertically extending boss 23 to interfit with a tray holder 13 in the manner previously described. Such a supplementary coupling element is illustrated as the element 33. This coupling element 33 is shaped like a somewhat modified double ended boss 23 having conical surfaces 24", conical frustum surfaces 25", and a cylindrical portion 26". When it is desired that a top It) be used as a bottom section 11, the area 31 is removed thus converting the single ended aperture 30 into the double ended aperture 29. The coupling element 33 is then utilized to interlock the bottom 11 with the bottom of the tray holder 13 in the manner illustrated in FIGURES 2 and 7. In these figures, it is seen that the floor 19 of the drawer holder 13 is seated firmly upon the shoulder 35 which traverses the upper circumference of the bottom section 11.

Referring from the exploded view of FIGURE to the views of FIGURES 7, 8, and 9, it will be observed that FIGURE 7 includes all of the elements of FIGURE 5. That is, included in FIGURE 7 are a top section 10, a bottom section 11, two drawer holders 13, and a supplementary coupling element 33, all of which are interlocked in the manner aforedescribed. FIGURE 8 however differs from FIGURE 7 in that the bottom section 11 has been removed. The absence of the bottom section 11 from the showing of FIGURE 8 converts the supplementary coupling elements 33 into merely a set of feet which space the bottom tray holder 13 somewhat above the surface upon which the display assembly is supported. This arrangement provides a different appearance from that of FIG- URE 7 and may he sometimes considered preferable thereover. FIGURE 9 differs from FIGURE 8 in that the coupling elements 33 are completely absent and the display assembly therefore rests upon the bottom of the lowermost tray holder 13.

Referring now to the alternative embodiment of the invention illustrated in FIGURES 10, 11 and 12, it will be observed that the only differences between these figures and the embodiment shown in the preceding figures reside in the structure and method for interlocking the several sections. Comparing for example FIGURES 5 and 12, it is seen that the top and bottom sections 10 of FIGURE 12 are identical, whereas, the top 10 and bottom 11 of FIGURE 5 differ in that the top 10 contains the closure area 31. Similarly, the tray-holder sections 13 of FIGURE 12 differ from their counterparts 13 in FIGURE 5 in that the latter contain thickened corner portions which include integrally molded male and female connector elements, whereas, the former contain no such integrally molded elements but utilize instead the separate connector elements 41. Additionally, the separate connector elements 49 and 42 are associated respectively with the top and bottom 10'-10' of FIGURE 12.

The embodiment of FIGURES 10, 11 and 12 finds wide application in those instances where it is desired to form the top, bottom, and intermediate sections of relatively nard or non-resiliently deformable material. In such event it is at once evident that the integrally molded connector elements of FIGURE 5 are of no use whatever since their intended function can not be utilized. However, this problem is readily resolved in the embodiment of FIGURES 10, 11, and 12, by the simple expedient of a separation of functions. That is, the top and bottom NI -1t? and intermediate sections 13 may be formed of the desired non-resilient material, the connector elements 40, 41, and 42 may be separately formed of a resiliently deformable material, and corresponding parts may then be joined as shown in FIGURE 11 to form composite assembly sections which may be assembled as seen for example in FIGURE 10.

Referring first to FIGURE 12 and particularly to the top connector element 4t and top section 10', it is seen that the portions 43 and 44 of the former are complementally shaped to the surfaces 46 and 47 of the aperture 3t? in the latter, so that the connector 40 may be snapped downward into place in the aperture 30'. Similarly, the portions 43' and 44' of the bottom connector element 42 are complementally shaped to the surfaces 45 and 47 of the aperture 30 in the bottom section 10', so that the connector 42 may be likewise snapped downward into place in the bottom section 10'. The intermediate connector elements 41 include a main body portion 48, a reduced portion 49 and a shouldered portion 50. The reduced portion 49 is accommodated by the reduced aperture 54 of the tray-holder 13 while the shouldered portion 50 is disposed in the widened aperture 53, the main body portion 48 extending downward between the inside and outside walls 18 and 16'. The separated view of FIGURE 11 illustrates the various connector elements 40, 41, and 42, snapped into place in their respective display assembly sections.

Each of the intermediate connector elements 4-1 includes a ball top 51 and a complementally shaped bottom aperture 52, whereas the top connector element 40 includes only a similarly shaped bottom aperture 45 (seen in FIGURE 10), and the bottom connector 42 includes only a ball top 51. The ball tops 51 and 51 snap fit into the bottom apertures 45 and 52 so that the individual assembly sections may be assembled into a composite unit as illustrated in FIGURE 10. It should be clear, of course, that assemblies similar to those of FIGURES 8 and 9 can readily be derived from the assembly of FIGURE 10 by removing from the latter first the bottom section 10' and then the connector elements 42.

Referring now to FIGURES 2 and 4 it will be observed that the front panels 36 of the trays 12 are vertically longer than the tray height, so that the front panel 36 of the upper tray overlaps the skirt 32 of the top section 10 and the front skirt 14 of the top tray holder 13. Similarly, the front panel 36 of the lower tray 12 partially overlaps the front skirts 14 of the upper and lower tray holders 13. Of course, it should be understood that the arrangement shown in the various figures is merely for purposes of illustration, and many variations are possible. For example, the individual tray sections 13 need not all be of the same height but may be of many different heights depending upon the' purpose for which the individual tray assembly is designed. Moreover, a tall section with a door afiixed to one side could readily be substituted for a tray holder for use in those cases where it is desired to display merchandise of relatively large dimensions in the ver-. tical direction.

Although our invention has been described in connection with, and as applied to, an expandable capacity storage and display device, it will be understood of course, that such description is for illustrative purposes only and various changes and modification may be made from time to time without departing from the general principles or real spirit thereof, and accordingly it is intended to claim the same broadly as well as specifically, as indicated by the appended claims.

What is claimed as new and useful is:

1. In an expandable capacity display assembly, an assembly element interlockable with similar elements and comprising, a plurality of substantially vertically extending side wall structures and a top wall, each of said plurality of side wall structures being recessed so that each side wall includes an inner and an outer side wall portion and said top wall bridges the inner and outer portions of each side wall, a plurality of headed connectors extending from spaced areas of the surface of said top 'wall, each of said headed connectors including a neck portion and a surmounted integrally formed head portion of larger horizontal cross-section than that of said neck, and a plurality of connector-receiving apertures vertically underlying said connectors extending from said top Wall and including regions shaped complementally to the neck and head portions of the headed connectors, whereby said assembly element is interlockable with other assembly elements of the same kind by positioning one assembly element over the other so that the connectors of the lower register with the apertures of the upper and interlock therewith upon application of suitable vertically directed force effective to temporarily horizontally radially compress the said head portion of each connector until the latter passes through the neck portion of the complementally formed connector-receiving apertures and into the head receiving portion thereof to thereby effect a snap-action interlock.

2. The assembly element according to claim 1 wherein said assembly element is of generally rectangular configuration and said connectors and apertures are located at the rectangle corners.

3. The assembly element according to claim 1 wherein said outer portion of each side wall structure includes an inwardly offset shoulder below the surface of the bridging top wall.

4. The assembly element according to claim 1 wherein said inner portion of each side wall structure includes an outwardly offset shoulder below the surface of the bridging top wall.

5. The assembly element according to claim 1 wherein said outer portion of each side wall structure includes an inwardly offset outside shoulder below the surface of the bridging top wall, and said inner portion of each side wall structure includes an outwardly ofiset inside shoulder below the surface of the bridging top wall.

6. The assembly element according to claim 1 wherein said plurality of inner side wall portions are each connected to a floor.

7. An assembly of a plurality of assembly elements according to claim 3 wherein the bottoms of the outer side wall portions of one assembly element seat on the inwardly offset shoulders of the assembly element immediately beneath it when said assembly elements are assembled together.

according to claim 4 wherein the inner side Wall portions of each assembly element are connected to an assembly element floor, and wherein the underside of the floor of one assemblyelement seats on the outwardly offset shoulders of the assembly element immediately beneath it when said assembly elements are assembled together.

9. The assembly element according to claim 5 whereinsaid inside and outside shouldersare spaced unequal distances below the surface of the bridging top wall.

10. In an expandable capacity display assembly, an assembly element interlockable with similar elements and comprising, a plurality of substantially vertically extending side Wall structures each recessed to include an inner and an outer side wall portion, a top wall bridging the inner and outer portions of each sidewall, said outer portion of each sidewall structure including an inwardly offset outside shoulder below the surface of the bridging top wall, said inner portion of each sidewall structure including an outwardly offset inside shoulder below the surface of the bridging top wall, and an assembly element floor connected to the inner sidewall portions of each assembly element, whereby the underside of the floor of a first assembly element seats on the inside shoulders of a second assembly element immediately beneath it and the bottoms of the outer sidewall portions of said first assembly element seat on the outside shoulders of said second assembly element when said first and second assembly elements are assembled together, a plurality of connectors extending from spaced areas of the surface of said top wall, and a plurality of apertures vertically underlying said connectors extending from said top wall and including a region shaped complementally to the connectors, whereby said assembly element is interlockable with other assembly elements of the same kind by positioning one assembly element over the other so that the connectors of the lower register with the apertures of the upper and interlock therewith upon application of suitable force.

11. The assembly according to claim 10 wherein the inside and outside shoulders of said second assembly element are spaced unequal distances below the surface of said second assembly element top wall.

12. The assembly element according to claim 1 wherein each side wall structure includes an inwardly offset outside shoulder below the surface of the top wall.

13. The assembly element according to claim 1 wherein each side wall structure includes an outwardly offset inside shoulder below the surface of the top wall.

14. The assembly element according to claim 1 where in each side wall structure includes an inwardly offset outside shoulder and an outwardly offset inside shoulder below the surface of the top Wall.

15. The assembly element according to claim 14 wherein said inside and outside shoulders are spaced unequal distances below the top wall surface.

16. In an expandable capacity display assembly, a first assembly-element type comprising, a plurality of substantially vertically extending side wall structures and a top wall, a plurality of headed connectors extending from spaced areas of the surface of said top wall, each of said headed connectors including a neck portion and a surmounted integrally formed head portion of larger horizontal cross-section than that of said neck, a plurality of connector-receiving apertures vertically underlying said connectors extending from said top wall and including regions shaped complementally to the neck and head portions of the headed connectors, a second as sembly-element type comprising, a plurality of side walls and a top wall, said top wall including a plurality of connector-receiving apertures shaped complementally to the connectors of said first assembly-element type, said apertures being so positioned that said assembly-element types may be interlocked by positioning said second type above said first type so that the connectors of the latter register with the apertures of the former and interlock therewith upon application of suitable vertically directed force effective to temporarily horizontally radially compress the said head portion of each connector until the latter passes through the neck portion of the complementally formed connector receiving apertures and into the head receiving portion thereof to thereby effect a snap-action interlock, the upper surface of the top wall of said second assembly-element type immediately above the apertures therein being also readily removable so that the apertures thereupon communicate with both the upper and under surface of the top wall, and an auxiliary coupling element for interlocking said first and second assembly element types with said second type positioned below said first type, said coupling element interlocking with said second assembly-element by being projected downward into the apertures therein through the removable portions of the upper surface of the top wall when the latter are so removed and also interlocking with the apertures of said first assembly-element type, whereby the top of said second assembly-element type interlocks with the underside of said first assembly-element type.

17. The display assembly according to claim 16 wherein the side walls of said second assembly-element type include an inwardly offset shoulder below the top wall surface, and the walls of said first assembly-element type are bottom-recessed so that they seat upon the shoulder of the second assembly-element type.

18. The assembly element according to claim 1 wherein said connectors are formed integrally with said top wall and said vertically underlying apertures are formed integrally in said side wall structure.

19. The assembly element according to claim 1 wherein said connectors and vertically underlying apertures are included in a plurality of connector elements formed separately from said top and side wall structures, said connector elements being interlocked with the latter.

20. The assembly element according to claim 19 wherein each of said separate connector elements is interlocked with said top and side wall structure through an aperture in said top wall.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 738,980 Bradley Sept. 15, 1903 797,689 Kellog Aug. 22, 1905 1,303,985 Straubel May 20, 1919 1,321,097 Gonzales Nov. 11, 1919 1,408,047 Upp Feb. 28, 1922 1,774,237 Rand Aug. 26, 1930 1,947,055 Moorman Feb. 13, 1934 2,330,044 Gaston Sept. 21, 1943 2,352,684 Braddock July 4, 1944 FOREIGN PATENTS 239,917 Switzerland Mar. 1, 1946 787,825 Great Britain Dec. 15, 1957 

